Thiendavis – For The Perfect Salvation

Chapter 13. Not Okay at All!

In the dim early dawn, before the break of morning, Zion was leaving Laurel Castle with his aides.

Having completed his business in Thienda, he was returning to Vis.

Yesterday, Zion had expressed his opposition to the appointment of Evie Ariate as a saintess to the noble faction.

Given his use of blatant language, a commotion was bound to ensue.

Inevitably, the arrows of blame would be directed at Evie Ariate.

Things would become quite difficult for her, but Zion chose not to be bothered by it.

There was no need to worry too much about someone with such a bold character, who would use him as insurance or, as they say, has a thoroughly calculative personality, saying whatever she feels like.

Zion organized his thoughts about Evie.

"Zion!"

Cutting through the monotonous sound of horse hooves, Zion heard a voice calling him.

It was obvious who it was.

The only person who could call his name in that castle was his half-brother, the Grand Duke Laurel.

The Grand Duke appeared on horseback, dressed in indoor clothes, as if he had just emerged from his chambers.

Furthermore, he was accompanied only by a servant, hastily following him, without his escort or aides.

As the Grand Duke rushed out in that attire, Zion's aides immediately pulled on the reins, which compelled Zion to stop as well.

"Are you heading back to Vis?"

The Grand Duke, upon catching up with Zion, inquired.

His voice was gentle, in contrast to his usual sharp and domineering tone.

However, Zion merely nodded, without granting any more leeway to his extremely caring brother.

"When will you return again?"

The Grand Duke asked, sounding slightly disheartened.

Return again?

For Zion, that was an incorrect expression.

Thienda or Laurel Castle was not a place for him to return.

It was merely a location he reluctantly had to visit out of necessity.

He didn't want to stay longer if possible, but he had to come back soon nonetheless.

Therefore, Zion gave a brief answer to the Grand Duke.

"During the saintess selection ceremony."

At that moment, Zion planned to take Evie Ariate, who could not be the saintess.

***

―Duchess Bayen is outraged. She is infuriated, calling the declaration of Count Laurel a rebellion against God and Thiendavis.
―Marquis Montre has held discussions with nobles, expressing a position that he will actively gather everyone's opinions.
―The Tuha family is flooded with protest. The family is considering the emergence of a saintess on a family level.
―Some directly complain to the tower, but the tower's owner remains silent.
―The Grand Duke Laurel virtually condones his younger brother's decision.

Evie skimmed through the note summarizing the current situation with the great nobles and the saintess.

Then, she continued to examine the public opinion among the nobility.

―Some voices criticize Count Laurel for mortgaging peace, calling it another insult to the great nobles.
―Others argue for considering the count's feelings, saying he's faced a grave rebellion.
―The blame falls heavily on Evie Ariate, claiming she should've known better than to meddle with the Watcher of Amanecer.
―Resulting in a sneering voice that it's already generous enough not to execute that commoner summarily.
―And a majority opinion opposes making Evie Ariate a saintess.
―There are also specific opinions insisting purification can continue without her becoming a saintess.

After reading all the notes, Evie's face turned pale.

Having confirmed the stirring public opinion in Thienda, she covered her face with both hands, biting her lips.

'Don't cry, don't cry.'

She desperately held back her tears.

'Don't you dare shed a tear for someone like that.'

Evie gritted her teeth, enduring to keep the tears that pooled around her eyes from overflowing.

In reality, the count had made quite a magnificent mess, only to disappear to Vis at dawn the next day.

As a result, all the blame fell on Evie, who had remained in Thienda.

Thus, Evie found herself more isolated than ever, even more than when she first entered the social circles, facing the nobility's reproach.

Barely swallowing her tears, Evie lifted her head and inhaled deeply.

Yet, her mind remained unsettled.

It felt as though the ground beneath her was collapsing, even more despairing than when she was cursed.

―It would be better for you to give up on your own rather than be forced to give up by me.

In her cluttered mind, the words of the count resurfaced.

―I am sure it will cause a stir if I take action.

Yes, the count had indeed said this.

And he kept his words to the letter. In doing so, he had successfully cornered Evie.

As Evie reflected on the count's words and deeds, she couldn't help but let out a wry laugh.

She was glad that she never trusted him, never fell for empty promises about repaying debts or offering care.

Because that person, simply out of annoyance, would meddle in another's life, saying he would take care of it himself, making her thoughts irrelevant.

'To think I considered relying on someone like that, I'm still far from being there.'

Evie harshly reproached herself.

Nevertheless, the feelings did not improve at all.

If the count had truly taken such measures out of anger, it would've been better.

If he truly intended to punish her for her rudeness, Evie would have accepted the situation with humility.

However, the count was not like that.

He had no particular emotion or grudge against Evie's words, merely using the situation to ensure his proposal came to fruition.

A proposal to take care of her against her will, all because of that ridiculous suggestion.

As Evie's mind brimmed with anger, the count's voice echoed once more in her head.

―Post the saintess selection, notify me. Tell me how I should take care of you.

"Don't be ridiculous, you crazy bastard...!"

Evie managed to swallow her scream just in time.

"Lady Evie, may I come in?"

"Do you think you can!"

Diez's voice came from outside the study, and Evie, unfortunately, screamed.

Even in situations like this, the curse intricately vexed her.

Although it spurred further irritation, Evie sighed deeply, calming herself down with some dry facial rubbing.

Then, she finally turned towards the quiet door and spoke again.

"Yes, please come in."

Outside the door, Diez hesitated for a moment before timidly pulling the doorknob.

As the door opened, Evie could be seen sitting by a pile of miscellaneous documents.

Evie, in her bright pink dress, was as charming as ever.

Only, her complexion was paler than usual, although she forced a smile, evidently wanting to hide it.

"Oh dear, what should I do? It seems like no one is on my side right now. The only remaining figure might be the very angry Duchess Bayen?"

Evie said to Diez, flicking the papers as if to fan herself.

"And it seems Marquis Montera is the first one to withdraw support from me."

"That person, if I recall, even sent you a bouquet last week, Lady Evie."

"Sweet when it serves and casts away when it doesn't. Simply, Evie is sweet, but Evie tainted by Count Laurel is bitter, or something like that."

Evie chatted animatedly without being asked, before suddenly bursting into laughter.

Her pale face laughing heartily was indeed a sight, to which Diez, unable to help himself from asking, finally spoke.

"Are you really okay?"

"No, I'm not! Not at all! I'm about to go crazy!"

Her innermost feelings exploded inevitably.

As the precariously worn mask flew off, Evie, wearing a deeply aggrieved expression, stared at Diez before collapsing her head onto the desk.

"This curse is so incredibly annoying..."

Listening to Evie's self-deprecating lament, Diez approached and perched himself on the desk, gently patting Evie's back.

"Don't bother trying to console me."

Evie retorted, even more irritably.

Therefore, Diez switched gears, rolling Evie's head back and forth, side to side.

A far cry from consolation, it pushed Evie to her limits, leading to a justified retaliation where Diez ended up coughing due to a blow to his solar plexus.

After asserting her rightful retribution, Evie collected her breath, eventually speaking again with her color somewhat restored.

"Although I'm not okay, thanks to this, I can make a decision."

"What decision in such a situation?"

"Whether it's the Count or the Tower Lord, they're both tyrants to me. If I don't want to be swept along, I need the status of a saintess."

Thanks to the cathartic break earlier, Evie's expression hardened with resolution.

She stated this with such a face to Diez, who looked at her skeptically.

"You might wonder why I'm still talking about becoming a saintess amidst this atmosphere. But I believe this situation isn't solely disadvantageous to me."

"Then who else could it put at a disadvantage?"

"The count."

Thinking of that hateful individual, Evie grinned, her teeth clenched.

"Right now, everyone might be trying to placate the count, blaming me, but perhaps over time, they'd find it irritating slightly. A count who threatened all nobility over personal matters—this very thing is tyrannical, isn't it?"

"Regardless, the count will remain steadfast. He is from Laurel."

"But it'll be different if another noble of equal standing steps up. Thankfully, Duchess Bayen is furious about this. Therefore, there will surely come an opportunity to turn this situation around."

Evie quietly muttered, with determination blazing in her eyes. It was not a baseless optimism but a sort of desperate resolve not to give up.

Reviving her spirit after a brief despair, Evie returned to seeking out possible actions she could take.

"Before that, I need to do something about this curse..."

"Regarding that, I recently received a message. From our ally."

At Evie's lament, Diez promptly announced, as if waiting, that news had arrived, causing Evie's eyes to widen.

Without further delay, Diez reported.

"It appears there are both achievements and challenges. Firstly, they successfully tracked the location of the snake. However, another Clan of the Night resides in the area, making it confusing to determine which side the snake belongs to."

Upon hearing this, Evie's face, which briefly brightened, clouded over again.

"What do you mean? They supposedly sense each other as if they were one, yet they get confused?"

Anticipating such a question, an explanation was provided.

"When you interlace your fingers, you too will surely get confused as to which fingers belong to which hand."

With a seemingly teasing analogy, Evie was momentarily speechless.

However, the real kicker followed right after.

"Therefore, they request your presence in Vis. They insist you need to be there to distinguish the snake."

"In Vis?"

Unconsciously, Evie raised her voice.

As a valuable asset to the tower, Evie could only traverse areas the Tower Lord permitted.

Moreover, Evie had tried to escape the tower's grasp by fleeing to Vis before, only to suffer dire consequences, leaving her unable to travel freely even within Thienda, let alone Vis.

But now they demanded she come down there.

"Is it absolutely necessary for me to go?"

"I am unsure. I was about to verify if there's another method by traveling to Vis myself..."

"No."

Knowing well that Evie could not escape the Tower Lord's watchful gaze, Diez, without reluctance, was about to seek alternative methods.

However, Evie suddenly interrupted.

She had no margin left for delay.

Unable to afford days squandered in fruitless search when Thienda's nobles had already turned their backs and the curse constrained her, Evie spoke with a contemplative expression.

"I will go. I will request permission from the Tower Lord."

"They won't easily permit it. Moreover, they will surely inquire about the reason..."

"It's for the count."

"The count?"

"I'll tell them I need to meet the count. That to become a saintess, I must convince the count."

Though initially distressed by Evie's reckless assertion, Diez wore a slightly blank expression at the mention of the count.

"The Tower Lord is presently in a wager with me and has agreed not to use their authority to hinder me until it's concluded."

To reassure the worried butler, Evie continued calmly.

"Therefore, approval is bound to come. If they block me here, it would mean they're using their authority to obstruct my becoming a saintess forcibly."

There was a time Diez was certain that Evie's true strength, which the nobility couldn't even fathom, lay in her intelligence and courage.

But perhaps that thought needs slight revision.

It seems Evie Ariate's cunning outweighs it all.

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